Formal Education vs. Street Smarts

[CHRISHOGGALYPSE]

I'm curious how y'all feel about the subject of which is really the most important between the two. I hated school and did fairly poorly because I just didn't care but the amount of things I've learned about life and how to live through observation has been my university. I've met a lot of people that went to college and all they know is what their professors were spewing out of their mouths. They have a micro view of the world that was force fed to them by their teachers but don't really have anything to add to a conversation.

Another thing to add to it, do you all feel like someone that has been an underachieving student maybe just had poor teaching? I'm personally a firm believer that just about anyone can be taught but it's a matter of relating the subject matter to them which is difficult if you have over crowded classrooms.

 

[MRTHECOSE]

yeah i agree

 

[Lordbyron]

Aint nothin' wrong with formal education... Aint nothin' wrong with street smarts either... Some of the brightest cats I've met have a healthy combination of both... College grads from South Central LA types...

 

[HIM]

I prefer both and have both...It also depends on what type of life you want to lead...if you plan to live the street life then of course you need to have street smarts..Even formal education can assist you in your "street life goals"..If you want to be a doctor, obviously street smarts is not goin to cut it, but street smarts and formal education can and often times DO go hand in hand. It really depends on who you ask and how they interpret the issues.

I also think there is a big misconception about what college teaches people...yeah, many degrees are narrowly focused(more so in the Graduate degrees) but college also encourages you to research and become a criticlal thinker. Its not like K-12 where you arent allowed or encouraged to challenge the teacher. In college we were basically able to WHATEVER the hell we wanted, as long as you supported your stance on the matter with real evidence...I loved that s--t...

College/formal education is really what you make of it(with limitations)..Its basically a platform created for you to educate yourself, which is why many go to college and fail to learn anything(that is their fault)...you can learn about anything you want to learn...its a platform designed just for that...Is it expensive? HELL YEA!!(I got a athletic scholarship so it was free for me but still)....

Like I mentioned earlier, its not the end all be all, but it has it purpose...as well as being street smart..

 

[carl winslow]

depends on what you mean by important.

education gives you the pieces of paper that society values to open doors for you. theres exceptions of course, but the more formal education credentials you have (especially from brand name schools), the better your opportunity for getting jobs. and jobs give us financial security and social status which many people find important. you can achieve these things without school, but education is good security tool to attain the things that are of high social value. society simply embraces you better the more educated you are.

if by important you just mean being a well rounded person who can take on lifes challenges...then yeah, true growth comes from raw exposure to VARIOUS aspects of the world (and school isnt necessary for this). this isnt to be confused with just plain "hood smart"....just being from the hood doesnt automatically fill you with a wealth of experience...its what you make of it.

and if by important you mean just being happy...i think that comes from within, and developing a strong sense of self assurance and confidence. both education and vast life experiences can contribute to making one feel more happy and sure of themselves.

like has been said on here, a college education doesn't hurt. if combined with real life experience, college has a lot to offer to expand your horizons.

k-12 school is a joke though and whole nother story.



so why do some kids underachieve??? its not the teachers, which everyone loves blaming now a days...nor is it the students. its simply because school is LAME

check out this article and i think it explains it pretty well:
http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/freedom-learn/200909/why-don-t-students-school-well-duhhhh


this is why i made the thread earlier about the schools which dont force the kids to learn anything and just let them learn things naturally. seems like thats the way we need to go

 

[BENNY_BLANCO1]

I've met a lot of people that went to college and all they know is what their professors were spewing out of their mouths. They have a micro view of the world that was force fed to them by their teachers but don't really have anything to add to a conversation.

I've noticed that of everyone. Usually it's a flaw in the individual, not in the education they receive.
There's people who accept whatever their fed as truth, and others who approach everything with a critical mind.

Another thing to add to it, do you all feel like someone that has been an underachieving student maybe just had poor teaching?

Usually, in my experience, it's because the parents didn't place education as a priority. They didn't have money to get their kid a tutor but somehow managed to have cable, internet and by an SUV with rims. If kids aren't taught respect and to value education how are they going to approach a teachers authority and the lessons taught?

... but it's a matter of relating the subject matter to them which is difficult if you have over crowded classrooms.

In highschool I was usually in a classroom of 30 or more and the problem wasn't because I couldn't relate to the material or because there were too many students.

I didn't care about school. My friends didn't care about school. And our parents didn't care too much past yelling at us for bad grades and cutting school.


Your quote about having a "micro view of the world that was force fed to them" applies to an education from the streets as well.
How many kids grew up thinking their world was the block and believing that going to prison over some bullshit was a perfectly viable option?

 

[radiostationrep]

It really depends on what you ultimately do with yourself. I never liked school as a teenager and dropped out in 11th grade. I just wasn't feeling the authority associated with education and the system in general. At some point, after a long tenure in the streets and behind the walls, I realized that in order to play with these people making the decisions that ultimately affected myself and others like me, I needed an education. It is a work in progress at this very moment. The people I attend classes with do not know my background and at times are astonished by my demeanor as it relates to certain subject matter. But I will say a combination of both is a recipe for success and change for the better of society, imo. Many posts have touched on the topic to perfection. No need to repeat what has already been said.

 

[CHRISHOGGALYPSE]

@ Benny,
I've noticed it in a lot of people, especially people that live in one town or area their whole lives and think they have the world figured out. But I've met WAY more people that go to like 2 years or less of college and try and talk down to people like they're really smart or smarter than someone that never went to college.

 

[ColdBlooded]

Can we get a Yes or No poll?

 

[Fucky McFuckerson]

I'm curious how y'all feel about the subject of which is really the most important between the two. I hated school and did fairly poorly because I just didn't care but the amount of things I've learned about life and how to live through observation has been my university. I've met a lot of people that went to college and all they know is what their professors were spewing out of their mouths. They have a micro view of the world that was force fed to them by their teachers but don't really have anything to add to a conversation.

Another thing to add to it, do you all feel like someone that has been an underachieving student maybe just had poor teaching? I'm personally a firm believer that just about anyone can be taught but it's a matter of relating the subject matter to them which is difficult if you have over crowded classrooms.

Is this the book smart vs street smart argument? You need both IMO (and by street smarts, i mean common sense).

 

[Mr. Nice Guy]

Is this the book smart vs street smart argument? You need both IMO (and by street smarts, i mean common sense).

I was just thinking how a lot people seem to (inaccurately IMO) associate street smarts with being from the hood or something.

Like you said, to me streets smarts is just common sense, wit, intelligence; while formal education is just that, education, and has no bearing on someone's intelligence.

 

[BENNY_BLANCO1]

@ Benny,
I've noticed it in a lot of people, especially people that live in one town or area their whole lives and think they have the world figured out. But I've met WAY more people that go to like 2 years or less of college and try and talk down to people like they're really smart or smarter than someone that never went to college.

2 years of less isn't much. Are these people in their early 20s? What kind of careers do they have?

Do you have any examples of how they talk down to people? Like snobbery, or politics? Morality?

Everyone I come across is usually an opinionated asshole who insists they know everything, regardless of background. But that's my experience.

 

[carl winslow]

^^yeah ive met college educated and non college educated people who feel entitled to talk down to people. i know really humble people who have never been to college and really humble people with masters and phds


on education and kids who do poorly here go some interesting videos

 

[The Duke of Earl]

if you go to prison read mao's red book

 

[Dhadnot]

Both duh, there's no vs. The only time someone talks about which "smarts" is better, is if they are in fact not smart -lack one kind of smart.

 

[radiostationrep]

Both duh, there's no vs. The only time someone talks about which "smarts" is better, is if they are in fact not smart -lack one kind of smart.

Or spin the "smart" off as something entirely different.

Common sense tells you in a bedroom for instance, there is probably a bed, night stands, tv, maybe a bathroom and shower, etc., if it is a master bedroom suite. But can one truly navigate and describe the said room without actually entering the room? It is sort of like these scholars that think they know all the answers, or have the "common sense" to associate their state of mind as being "street smart." Associating and or dealing with people in the streets does not give you both. You need to live it, imo.

 

[:ab:]

Street smarts = common sense. not trusting people in a naive fashion.

 

[:ab:]

Street smarts = common sense. not trusting people in a naive fashion.

 

[:ab:]

Street smarts = common sense. not trusting people in a naive fashion.

 

[:ab:]

Street smarts = common sense. not trusting people in a naive fashion.